Thursday, May 21, 2015

Connecticut House Calls For Cheaper College Textbooks - Christopher Keating, Hartford Courant

Alarmed that college textbooks now cost an average of $1,200 per year per student, the state House of Representatives voted unanimously Tuesday to create a pilot program to help bring down the costs. By a vote of 144 – 0 with seven lawmakers absent, the House called for a program for using online textbooks, which can cut the price by nearly 90 percent. The pilot will be conducted at the University of Connecticut and colleges in the Board of Regents for Higher Education system. "There is no question that there is a very urgent need to help students who are overwhelmed with the cost of college,'' said Rep. Whit Betts, a Bristol Republican who serves as the ranking member of the legislature's higher education committee. "I strongly endorse moving forward.'' http://www.courant.com/politics/hc-house-votes-college-textbooks-0513-20150512-story.html